Farrar paints Penny for a mural on Parking Can Be Fun
You most certainly know the work of Calvin Farrar. It’s the Tigers and Grizzlies and Redbirds and snowmen, etc., that decorate the windows of Huey’s and the Bar-B-Q Shop and various other businesses around town.
He’s a Memphis native, who grew up in the New Chicago area. “I grew up painting — watercolors, cartoons,” he says.
His first gig was about 25 years ago for the old White Way Drugs on Cleveland. His second job was for the Bar-B-Q Shop. Then Huey’s picked him up and it went on from there.
He says he’s got about 80 clients all over the city, and it pays pretty well.
His clientele includes Margarita’s, Pancho’s, Cash Saver, Superlo, and Silky’s.
His method is pretty straightforward. He paints the window white, makes an outline, and then gets to work. It takes him a couple hours to complete a work.
A lot of his work is seasonal. He does different seasons and holidays, from Easter to Christmas.
At home, he works in oils. Currently, he’s been working on landscapes. He’d like to put together a show.
With his adorable tigers and grizzly bears, Farrar’s is not the type of work to court controversy. Though one time, he had to rework a mural, which had a grizzly pointing to a sign. It looked like the grizzly was giving the finger.
Farrar says he never has to pitch his work. “Most people are calling me,” he says.
